Andrew's Anxiety
by Yva J
Summary: Collaboration with SteffiCat.  While Andrew dreads Halloween, he somehow meets up with a little girl who dresses as a grim reaper.


_This little story was written several years ago as a collaboration by a friend of mine and I. The story was written in both English and German, and I'm posting the English verison today, in celebration of Halloween. I hope that you will enjoy it, and have a spectacular Halloween. Just remember, friends don't let friends dress as grim reapers and trick or treat at Andrew's place! _

_Please read and review, but also enjoy! _

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**Andrew's Anxiety**

By: SteffiCat & Yva J.

It was the afternoon before Halloween night and Andrew made his way through the small town's shopping district and was walking in the direction of the main square. Unlike the other inhabitants of this town, the green eyed Angel of Death was not smiling, in fact, he had a look on his face that was a direct depiction of the old cliché 'death warmed over'.

He watched the children as they happily ran through the streets. They were talking jovially about how much candy they would collect that night and what kinds of costumes they would be wearing.

The angel released a pent up sigh as he listened to the happy chatter. 'I hate Halloween' he grumbled under his breath, his eyes filled with suppressed sadness. A few moments passed and he felt someone tugging on the sleeve of his jacket. He looked down and into the eyes of a girl who couldn't have been much older than six-years-old.

"Excuse me, Mister," the little girl stammered. "Could you please tell me how I can find my kindergarten class? I don't know where they went."

Andrew looked around and in the distance he saw a large group of children. "I think I can help," the angel smiled.

The little girl smiled and looked up at him. "I shouldn't be talking to you, because my mommy said that I shouldn't speak to strangers, but you look kind of nice."

Andrew's eyebrows arched ironically. "Kind of nice?"

"Yes," said the little girl. "That's why I asked you. I didn't know what else to do and everything here is so new and weird for me. I have to go back to my class or else I will get into a lot of trouble."

"I see them. Come on, I'll take you to them," Andrew offered and smiled.

No," the child responded. "I can't go with you, you're a stranger. Who knows who you might be?"

Andrew sighed deeply. "I assure you, I'm harmless, I wouldn't do anything to you. What's your name?"

"Georgia, but that doesn't mean that I will go with you, you could be the Grim Reaper, I mean it is Halloween," the girl smiled at him, but when he didn't return the gesture, she looked nervously at him. "Did I say something wrong?"

Andrew looked at her and shook his head. "No, I am just in a lousy mood about Halloween is all."

"Oh, but why?" Georgia asked curiously. "I think it's the best holiday of the whole year. I like it a lot more than Christmas, just because I can dress up in neat costumes and get a lot of candies. Didn't you ever get candy and stuff when you were a kid?"

Andrew looked at her. "Shouldn't you be catching up with your class?"

Georgia pouted, "who cares about those bozos? I want to know why you don't like Halloween. I mean; it's so cool, so tell me why you hate it. If I get into trouble, it will be worth it."

Andrew glanced skyward, his eyes towards the cloudy autumn sky. After releasing yet another sigh, he looked at Georgia, his eyes closing and he muttered a short prayer under his breath before opening them and looking down at the little girl who was waiting patiently for an answer to her questions.

"So?" She asked finally. "Please tell me."

"I'll start with a little question," he said and sighed. "Do you already know what you are going as?"

"Sure," she said smiling broadly. "I thought about it long and hard. Last year, I was a witch, the year before that, I was a goblin, and now there's only one thing missing."

Andrew moaned, he had a funny feeling that he knew what she was going to say.

"My mom sewed me this really cool black cape and I have a scythe," she explained excitedly. "I have wanted to go as 'Death' because my daddy said that that was what the boys always dress as, but that's not true. What do you think?"

Andrew looked at her and forced a smile. I think I'm going to be sick, he thought but when he saw the happy face of the little girl, he shook his head. "I don't know," he offered honestly after a few moments of silence had passed between them.

Georgia looked up at him. "You never told me your name," she offered. "If you're going to continue talking to me, you'd better tell me your name so if my teacher comes back, at least I can tell her I know you."

"My name is Andrew," he said softly.

"OK, now that that is out of the way," she said happily.

"Georgia, tell me please, why do you want to go out as a Grim Reaper?" He asked with agony in his voice.

"Halloween is the party for ghosts, and everything that is dark and scary comes out of hiding. That's why I want to be 'death' this year, he is scary and shocking," she said and looked at him with a lopsided grin. When he didn't return it, she continued. "Andrew is something wrong?"

The angel took a deep breath but he looked at Georgia not wishing to tell her the complete truth about who he was, but when he saw how happy she was, he knew that he couldn't. "I'll be OK," he said softly, but the small child was looking up at him and she could tell something was wrong.

"I said something wrong, didn't I?" She asked him softly.

The Angel of Death shook his head. "No, but why do you think you did?"

"My daddy always says that I do," she shrugged her shoulders. "He doesn't tell me, but I think that he wishes that I had been a boy."

"What makes you so certain?" He asked.

She shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know, but dressing like the boys is more fun than all that fluffy stuff girls dress as."

"Don't you like being a girl?" Andrew finally asked as Georgia shook her head.

"No, I think me being a girl was a mistake, I'm more like a boy. I like to climb trees, I like to ride my bike in races, and play football. I never play with dolls and all that other junk, I guess that's just the way it is."

Andrew nodded as though he understood, but beneath the tough exterior of the girl, he could see that there was a small trace of sadness. As he tried to take this in, the girl's teacher came over to them. The middle-aged woman did not look pleased, in fact, she looked angry. "Georgia, what are you doing?"

The little girl looked down at her feet, and Andrew could see that she was suddenly afraid. "She couldn't keep up with your class," he offered smiling. "My name is Andrew, I'm a volunteer at the school and was talking to her until you came back."

"You're the guy who was going to help us organize the Halloween carnival for the school, right?" She asked.

Andrew offered a reciprocating nod as the teacher continued. "I'm sorry about this, Andrew, I had forgotten that Georgia is new in school and she doesn't know the town all that well."

"Andrew was watching out for me," Georgia said softly. "I'm sorry that you had to come looking for me."

"You're very lucky that you met up with him. Do you know what could have happened?" The teacher griped at the little girl.

Georgia sighed deeply and looked up at the woman. "I'm sorry Mrs. Robinson, I guess it was because he talked to me, and was nice to me. It's really no fun being the new kid in town. The other kids aren't always so nice to me."

The teacher looked at her before turning her attention towards Andrew. "You want to come with us, Andrew, the class is heading over to get things set up at the gymnasium?"

Andrew nodded. "That's a good idea, if you want to know the truth, I sort of lost my way back there too."

Mrs. Robinson nodded. "Then come along with us, it's not so far now." The teacher brought Andrew and Georgia back to the class who were waiting for her to return.

"Hey guys, it's Georgia Porgy," one of the boys shouted. "The girl who would be a boy."

The other boys laughed and Georgia's face flushed and she walked slowly away from Andrew and her teacher without looking back.

Seconds passed and Andrew looked at the teacher. "How long has Georgia been here? It doesn't look like she has been here very long."

"No, Georgia started school here about fourteen days ago," the teacher explained. "She has done nothing but cause problems. Ever since she came, she has caused a lot of disturbances, which weren't here before."

Andrew watched Georgia as she sat off to one side and away from the other children. No one seemed to pay any attention to the little girl and she looked so lost and alone.

After a few minutes, he looked at her. "Don't you think that is a little harsh, I mean; she is just a little girl? I don't see how one child could create the disturbances you describe, especially since the others seem to delight in tormenting her."

The teacher looked at him. "You have obviously not been in an educational field for a very long time, Andrew. I can spot a problem child a mile away."

"Maybe you can't see that anymore because you're so deep into this field," Andrew responded harshly. "I think that Georgia has some problems, but you have done nothing but ignore them."

The teacher looked at the angel with anger in her expression. "Really? So, let me get this straight, you want to tell a person who has been in the educational field for years something like this? You are so young, Andrew, and you have a lot to learn, and one point you should know is not to talk to a more experienced colleague in such a manner."

Andrew shook his head. "It is truly amazing how often people overlook a small child all for the sake of being 'right'." With that, he backed away from her and walked over to Georgia who was sitting alone on the bleachers on one side of the gymnasium. "Georgia?" He spoke her name and she looked up.

The first thing he noticed was that Georgia's face was red and puffy as though she had been crying. When she made eye contact with him, he could tell that she was trying to be brave in the face of everything that had transpired.

"Hi," he said with a friendly smile and she tried to smile at him. "How are you, Georgia?"

The little girl shrugged her shoulders. "Great, I'm thinking about some stuff."

Andrew sat down on the bench next to her. "Do you want to tell me about it?" He eventually asked.

"No," she said softly.

The angel smiled gently at her. "It's not easy to be the new kid in town, is it?"

She shook her head. "My daddy got transferred here, and I hate it. I should be brave, but I don't like living here. The other kids don't like me, and I don't know why."

Andrew rested a gentle hand on her shoulder. "I like you."

"Really?" She asked shyly.

"Yes, really," he reiterated strongly.

"Then you are the only one," Georgia said sadly. "I guess I should call you Mr. Andrew because you're a teacher and I didn't know that, huh?"

The angel smiled gently at the little girl. "Georgia, you can just call me Andrew, you don't have to be formal with me. I am probably not your typical teacher."

She smiled meekly. "You're nicer than Mrs. Robinson. She doesn't like me anymore than the others." She paused for a moment and then spoke, her voice even softer. "Andrew, do you only like me because you feel sorry for me?"

"No, I like you because you are Georgia," Andrew said softly.

"Then you're the first," she repeated. "Andrew, no one accepts me as I am, really, no one."

"Do you accept yourself as you are?" Andrew asked and looked compassionately at her.

"I…I…I don't know," she stammered. "There's really nothing about me that I like."

"You don't mean that," Andrew said softly as he reached over and rested a gentle hand on her head.

"Yes, I do," she whispered as she felt the tears in her eyes but tried to wipe them away. "That's why I like Halloween so much, because then I can spend the day being anything else but me."

Andrew stroked the child's hair without saying anything for a few moments. All he could feel were the soft tresses as they brushed against his gentle fingers. After a second or two had passed, he smiled gently at her. "You would rather dress as something scary, why is that?"

"So the other kids will leave me alone, if they are scared of me, then they won't try to hurt me," she whispered.

Andrew looked at her intently. "Georgia, that's not the right way."

Georgia shrugged her shoulders. "What is then?" She whispered.

The angel smiled gently. "Scaring the other children would not be a way to become friends. The way to become friends is to be a friend."

"But, Andrew, they don't want to be my friends, they tease me, and it hurts," Georgia said softly. "But, you never even told me why you don't like Halloween. Why won't you tell me?"

Andrew nodded. "I'll explain everything to you, I promise, but not at this moment, OK? I think it would be better if I tell you tonight at the carnival."

"It's not easy for you, is it?" asked Georgia softly. "I will tell you something, Andrew, you listened to me and so I will listen to you, OK?"

The angel smiled as she got to her feet. "Thank you, Georgia," he said softly. "You are such a good friend and you don't even realize it."

She shrugged her shoulders, but when the teacher called her name, she looked at him, her eyes filled with sadness. "I have to go. They need my help."

As soon as she had left him, Andrew watched as she walked away, all the while his thoughts were a jumble. He knew that he would have to tell Georgia why it was he hated Halloween, but he wasn't sure he was really anxious about it.

* * *

That evening, Andrew stood at the doorway leading into the gym. He watched as the children ran through the doorway and into the large open room. "I hate Halloween," he grumbled as he watched two boys coming inside. They were dressed as skeletons and they went over to another group of boys, all of whom were dressed as ghosts and devils. 

After some time had passed, he could see a bunch of girls walking around dressed as witches. Their excited squeals erupted the room as they started bobbing for apples. Another group of princesses were sitting on the bleachers going through their bags of candy that they had gotten trick or treating just before coming to the carnival.

Andrew searched throughout the room for Georgia, but he could not see her anywhere. The angel looked down at his watch and then back at the activities in the room, the party had over the last half hour gotten into full swing, but the little girl had not shown up. He was starting to get worried about her until someone pulled on the arm of his jacket.

"Hi Andrew," the familiar voice of the child greeted him and he looked down to see the child dressed in a black cape. She had black makeup smeared across her face, but he could see the bright eyes of the child beneath it. In her hands, the child held two objects that made him groan. _An hourglass and scythe, please Father anything but that_, he thought to himself and stared up at the ceiling. _I have to stay for this?_

"Hi Georgia," Andrew eventually said with a sigh.

"What do you think, isn't this the coolest costume you've ever seem?" Georgia asked as she looked up at him.

Andrew swallowed, his eyes automatically closing for a moment and eventually, he opened them again and rubbed his hands together nervously. "I need to talk to you, sweetheart," he began.

"You don't like my costume, do you?" She asked, her voice the epitome of disappointment.

"Let's go outside and get some fresh air," the angel said. "I would like to tell you something, but I think we need to have a little peace and quiet."

"OK," Georgia answered. "No one here would miss me anyway."

The angel and the little girl dressed in the Grim Reaper costume walked outside. Near the entrance to the large gymnasium were a number of benches that lined the street and led through a dimly lit park.

Andrew sat down on one of the empty benches and Georgia looked around nervously. At this moment, it became obvious to Andrew that the little girl didn't know what to do and she remained standing, her weight shifting from one foot to the other.

"It's OK, honey, calm down, I won't hurt you," he tried to help ease her nervousness.

"What are we doing out here? What do you want to say to me?" Georgia eventually asked softly.

Andrew offered her his hand and waited for her to put the hourglass and scythe down on the bench. Once she did, she reached a hand out to him and began to tremble unconsciously as she felt his fingers curling around her tiny hand. After she sat down next to him, he looked at her, his eyes filled with compassion as he cleared his throat and was about to speak.

"Georgia, you have nothing to be afraid of. I would just like to talk to you about your costume," he said softly.

"I knew that you didn't like it, I could see it in your eyes," the little girl sighed with disappointment. "Regardless of what you think, I think it is really cool."

"Why?" The angel eventually asked with a sigh.

"I already told you," Georgia said. "Don't you even listen to me?"

Andrew took a deep breath, but he looked into the black painted face of the little girl. "Georgia, the last thing I would ever want to do is hurt you, but your costume, and ones like it are the reason I don't like Halloween."

The little girl looked at him. "I don't understand."

Andrew reached over and touched the sleeve of her costume. "Can I ask you a question that is completely unrelated to Halloween?"

She nodded. "OK."

"What do you think of when you think of 'death'?" He asked gently. "Do you think of images of the Grim Reaper, or skeletons?"

She thought about it for a few moments and then nodded as she shrugged her shoulders. "I guess so."

Andrew closed his eyes and sighed. _Father, I really need your help,_ he prayed to himself, _I don't want to terrify this child._

_Not to worry, Andrew, _the answer emerged. _Children tend to accept the truth better than grown ups do. Just tell her what is in your heart, My angel._

Andrew cleared his throat as he looked at Georgia. "I want to tell you the truth, and not just a piece of it, but the whole truth. Only I am afraid to."

"You are?" She asked softly. "Why?"

"Because, I'm afraid that what I have to tell you would scare you and I don't want to do that," Andrew eventually said. "Georgia, do you believe that angels exist?"

The little girl nodded slowly, but she was still thinking about Halloween and how angels could have anything to do with her costume or the carnival that was taking place in the gym. "My mom said that angels only come out at Christmas."

The angel smiled gently, but shook his head. "Not just at Christmas, sweetheart, angels are sometimes in the most unexpected places. Sometimes you might pass an angel on the street and not even realize it."

"Then that means that maybe I met an angel and didn't even know it?" She asked innocently.

"I would be willing to bet that you have," Andrew replied with a smile.

"I wish that I could remember if I had seen an angel," Georgia said as she looked down at her lap.

Andrew reached over and took her tiny hand in his, his touch causing her to only raise her head slightly, but she stared at the ground. "Come on, honey, look at me," he whispered gently.

The little girl looked up, but when she did, she backed up against the back of the bench. Surrounding Andrew was a brilliant and beautiful white light and in this light, he sat smiling serenely at her. She tried to pull her hand away from him, but he held it firmly, but gently in his own. "A-Andrew, what's happening?" She finally managed to ask.

"I'm an angel and this is a little piece of heaven that God wanted to share with you." He smiled gently at her, but he could see that she was still frightened. "You have nothing to be afraid of, sweetheart, I won't hurt you."

"You are really an angel?" She asked shyly. "Why were you sent to me? I mean; there are so many other kids here…It is about my costume? Are you mad at me because of it?"

Andrew reached over and pressed his finger against her lips. "Shhh, Georgia, let me answer one question at a time." He could see that she was still afraid and he removed his finger and looked at her serenely. "The reason I was sent to you was because God wanted to let you know that you are never ever alone. You may be sad and lonely because your parents moved you to this strange new place, but God moved with you and He loves you. He sent me here to tell you that."

The little girl looked down at her lap. "I should have been a boy," she whispered. "That's what my dad always says."

Andrew shook his head, "no, honey, you should not have been anything other than what you are."

"I'm a mistake," she said as the tears began to stream down over her cheeks.

Andrew sighed. "Georgia, you are not a mistake."

"The others in my class say that all the time," she cried. "There are so many that say that, too."

"That doesn't mean that they are right," the angel said gently.

As the tears continued to stream down the face of the little girl, Andrew could see that the black face make-up was starting to smear, and he could tell by looking at her that this was now getting in her eyes and causing her undue pain. He pulled a handkerchief from his pocket and wrapped his arm around her now trembling shoulders. "Here, sweetheart, let me help you," he offered as he began to wipe the substance from her face. "You're much prettier without all that stuff on your face anyway." He said as he offered her a gentle smile.

She continued to cry as she allowed him to wipe the make up from her face. Once he had removed most of it, she spoke, her voice soft. "Andrew, can you ask God a question for me?"

"What is that?" The angel asked with obvious surprise in his expression.

"Is He sure that I was supposed to be a girl? I mean; can He change that?" Georgia asked softly and looked down at her lap.

Andrew reached over and with the palm of his hand, he touched the chin of the child and tipped her face up so that she was looking at him. "Georgia, God made you exactly as you should be made," he said gently, but when he saw the utter disappointment in her face, he continued to speak, his voice filled with understanding. "You know, there is absolutely nothing wrong with a girl who likes to climb trees or play football instead of playing with dolls and having tea parties. God knew what He was doing when He made you a girl, maybe so that you could show other people that there is no such thing as toys for little boys and toys for little girls. Maybe these things are just toys, and they are things that all children can use. Just like you showed everyone tonight that your costume was not made just for boys."

"I guess God thinks that I should stay a girl," the little girl whispered matter-of-factly and Andrew nodded. "That's really not fair that I can't pick," she whispered softly all the while unable to make eye contact with him.

"Georgia, look at me," the angel said softly and Georgia shook her head.

"I can't."

"Why not? What is it, honey?" Andrew asked carefully and Georgia sighed. When she said nothing, he looked at her. "You know you can tell me anything you want, Georgia."

The child shook her head. "I don't think so."

Andrew took a deep breath, but he continued to hold her in his arms, the child's head coming to rest against his chest, and he smiled down at her. "You can, sweetheart, just tell me."

"I think you're mad at me," she whispered. "because of the costume, and…" her voice trailed off and she buried her face against his chest, the last of the makeup smearing across his lightweight jacket.

"Why?" Andrew tried once again to find out the answer.

"Just because," the child cried. "Why don't you like my costume, Andrew?"

The angel took a deep breath, but he kept his arm around her shoulders in the hopes of helping her to remain calm. "It isn't that I don't like your costume," he began, "I just don't like the images that it evokes. Halloween is the one thing that makes my job difficult, and it gives images of 'death' that simply aren't the truth."

"Really? Isn't death dark, cold, lonely, and sad?" She asked softly and looked at him with a red, puffy, and smeared up face.

Andrew sighed once again. "No, it is not. It is actually the opposite of that. No one who dies is alone, there is always an angel who is with them," he tried to explain.

Georgia looked down at the ground, her eyes filled with sadness, but after a few moments, she could see that the hourglass and the scythe were next to them on the bench. Instead of listening to his words, she got to her feet and grabbed the hourglass and threw it as hard as she could to the ground. It shattered and fragments of glass covered the ground.

Andrew got to his feet at that moment and before she could grab the scythe, he wrapped her in his arms. "Shhh," he cajoled her gently, but she struggled in his arms and tried to reach for the offending object. He knew that she did not yet understand what she was doing or why she was doing it.

"Andrew, I want to get rid of these things, they only make us sad," she cried, "and I am already sad enough."

"Because of what you just told me?" Andrew asked softly and looked at her.

"Maybe," she admitted.

Georgia sat back down on the bench and with her foot, she began to shove the fragments of the hourglass back together. "Andrew, are you going to leave me too?"

The angel sat down beside her, his hand coming to rest on her shoulder. "I will eventually leave, Georgia, but I can promise you one thing, God will never leave you."

She looked down at her lap as the tears began to stream down over her face. "I hate my life, I wish I was dead," she whispered more to herself than to him. "Everybody hates me and no one wants to be with me, not even an angel."

"Sweetheart, that is just not true. I am here with you and I like you very, very much. You are such a loving little girl."

"You have to say that, you're an angel," she cried. "You like me, but no one else. Nobody in the school likes me, and I am always alone. Andrew can't you take me with you when you go? Then at least I can be with you."

Andrew took the unhappy little girl in his embrace. "Georgia, deep inside, you know that that will not work."

"Why not?" She asked weakly as she sniffed and rubbed her forearm over her nose.

"You know that I cannot take you with me," he whispered gently to her. "I am not just an angel, Georgia."

"You're a teacher," she said matter-of-factly as she tried to wipe the last of the tears away.

Andrew chuckled softly, but he shook his head. "Do you remember when we talked about your costume and about death and dying a little bit earlier?" Once the little girl nodded, he continued. "I am not just an angel, Georgia, I have a very special job that God gave me, and that is, I'm an Angel of Death."

"That's why you didn't like the costume," she offered dryly. "When you were talking to me earlier, you were talking about yourself." As she finished speaking, she offered him a weak, but shy smile.

Andrew looked at her with surprise evident. "You are not afraid? I thought you were afraid of death."

"No, I'm not afraid of you, and if you're the Angel of Death, then that means that I shouldn't be afraid," she whispered after processing what he had just said.

Once she had spoken, Andrew smiled weakly at her. "Not very many people are as accepting of my presence as you are. Many think that I am the image of the Grim Reaper or that I would hurt them." He shook his head. "That's why I don't like Halloween."

"Is there such a thing as a Grim Reaper, Andrew?" The little girl asked.

The angel shook his head. "No, honey, there are only angels."

"Like you?" she whispered.

"Yes," he nodded. "God always sends an angel to people so that they would not be afraid."

"OK, then He sent you to me, that means that you will take me with you," she said softly and looked at the angel hopefully. "I want to go to a place where people like me, and you said that God loves me, so please, Andrew, please, take me there."

The angel could feel the tears in his eyes, but he touched her tangled hair; this made her look up and into his eyes. "Georgia, sometimes when I am sent to people, I am not always sent to take people to heaven, sometimes I get to bring heaven to them. That's why I am here with you, sweetie."

"You're not going to take me?" She asked softly.

"No, honey, I'm not" he whispered gently.

"That's not fair," Georgia said. "First you tell me that God loves me, then you say that death is not terrible and that you like me. Then you showed me that light. That's really not fair, it's like you take a candy bar and stick it under my nose, I'm hungry and then before I can eat it, you take it away from me again. I don't want to be alone anymore, can't you understand that?"

"I understand you very well, Georgia, but there are things that I cannot change, but maybe it changed you as I told you about it," the angel answered softly.

"I'm still alone, that doesn't change anything, and it doesn't matter that you said it or not," she said as the tears streamed down her cheeks.

Andrew glanced towards the heavens and spoke under his breath. _Father, what can I say now, what should I do?_

"Andrew, what are you doing?" Georgia asked softly.

The angel looked over at her. "I'm praying, Georgia. I asked God what I should say. I don't want to leave you alone, and I don't want to make you sad."

The little girl got to her feet and started to walk away from the bench. Andrew got to his feet as well and followed her. As they walked, Georgia stopped and turned around. "You don't want to make me sad? But I thought…" her voice trailed off.

"What is it, Georgia?" Andrew asked.

"Maybe I…Andrew, I just don't want to hurt you, and if I say what I am thinking, then I will," she said insecurely.

"Georgia, please tell me, it is the only way it will help you," the angel said.

Georgia hesitated. "I...I don't know..." she said, her voice filled with uncertainty.

"Use your courage, sweetie," the angel smiled encouragingly.

"It will hurt you…" she whispered. "Andrew, I was just thinking that it would have been better if we hadn't have spoken. I'm only sadder than I was before…"

"I am glad that you told me," Andrew said sadly. "I also know that I can't say anything else to you, yet I don't see any way that I can help you…" He offered her his hand and watched as she hesitantly reached for it.

Once she held his hand, she looked up at him. "Andrew, will you promise me something?"

"What's that?" Andrew asked.

"I want to see you again," the little girl said softly as she looked at him. "If God doesn't want me, then will you come back and see me?"

Andrew nodded and offered his arms to the little girl dressed in the Grim Reaper costume, when she came over to him, she held up her arms to him and he picked her up, her head coming to rest against his shoulder. "I will come back to see you, sweetheart, I promise."

"Soon?" She asked as he sat down on the bench with her in his arms.

"You never know," he smiled gently. "But don't ever forget that you are loved."

"By you?" She asked softly.

"Exactly," Andrew affirmed, "and by God."

"Oh who cares about Him, He doesn't want me, I would rather have you for a friend," she whispered.

"Georgia, I'd like to ask you a question," Andrew said after a few moments of silence passed between them.

"What?"

"When you believe that God doesn't love you and that He would not want to have you as you said, then why do you suppose He sent me to you?" The angel asked and looked at her with a smile.

Georgia thought about this for a few moments, then she spoke. "Uh…I don't know…"

Andrew nodded. "I have to tell you that I am deeply touched that you care so much for me, but the extent to which I care for you cannot even begin to foreshadow the extent that God cares for you. He loves you so much, Georgia, and when you cry, He weeps for you because He knows how hard your life has been and how lonely you have been."

"He does?" She asked softly.

"Yes, the Father does, and He wants you to know that as long as you ask Him to be there for you, He will," Andrew said gently.

"Father? Is He like your daddy?" the little girl asked.

Andrew smiled and nodded. "Yes, He is."

"So when I say things like I like you better, it hurts His feelings?" She looked down at her lap. "I'm sorry, Andrew."

"God is not angry with you, that would never ever happen, simply because He loves you," Andrew said softly.

Georgia held tightly to him. "Andrew, can't you make the other kids like me? Or can't God do anything to help?"

"Georgia, you will notice in time that you will get through everything," Andrew said and stroked her hair gently. "I do have something here for you, little one."

The angel reached inside his jacket pocket and pulled a shining object out. "Georgia, I would like to give you something that would help you remember me even when I'm not with you and you feel lonely."

With these words, he took a small silver necklace with a tiny charm dangling from it and put it around her neck. "Sweetheart, whenever you feel lonely, then look at this little charm and know what I told you. God is always with you and you are never, ever alone."

Georgia looked down at the charm that now hung from a silver chain around her neck. "It's a little girl with wings," she whispered, and after a second passed, she looked at Andrew. "A little angel?"

Andrew smiled and nodded.

"This is better than trick or treating or pretending to be someone else, Andrew," the little girl said enthusiastically, but after a few moments, her smile disappeared and she looked sadly at him. "But, Andrew, I don't have anything for you."

"You just gave me the nicest gift that you could have possibly given," Andrew said softly. "You said that there is something nicer than pretending to be someone else."

"Yeah, well, I can't change that," Georgia said softly. "But, now I have my little angel with me and I will never take this necklace off."

Andrew smiled when he discovered how much the little girl loved his gift. Instead of taking away all the joy she seemed to carry as she held the small necklace, he smiled. "Just don't forget that regardless of if you wear that necklace or not, that you are so loved."

Georgia nodded, but looked down at the ground and picked up a small flower that had somehow survived the harsh autumn wind and rain, and she plucked it out of the ground and looked down at it. The petals were worn and some had even fallen off as she held it in her hand. This small crumpled and forgotten flower, she handed to him.

The angel took the small flower in one hand, pulled his pocket watch out of his pocket and placed the small flower inside the golden cover. "Now, wherever I go, you will be with me," he said gently as he ruffled her hair.

The little girl smiled weakly, but something told her that it was nearing time to say 'good-bye'. As this became clear to her, she looked down at her lap one last time.

"I think I should take you back to the carnival, sweetheart," Andrew said gently and she nodded with the energy of a deflated balloon.

"Wait a second," Georgia said and stood up. "I still have to do something before I go back." With these words, she took off the dark costume and laid it on the bench next to the surprised angel. "I don't want to be 'death' anymore," she said confidently. "Even if I don't have a costume anymore, then I will not pretend to be something that is not true. I'm Georgia and even if the others don't like me, I know that I have the love of an angel and of God and you can't get better than that."

As he heard her words, Andrew could feel the tears in his eyes. "Georgia, that means so much to me," he said gently. "You probably don't even know how much."

"Are you crying?" She asked as she suddenly looked up at him. "I didn't mean to make you sad."

Andrew responded by wrapping her in his arms and swinging her around. She shrieked in delight as her feet left the ground and as he returned her to her feet, she looked up at him. "Why did you cry?"

"When we first met this afternoon, I was feeling positively miserable. I couldn't get Halloween out of my mind and I really was not looking forward to this night. But, meeting you and talking to you made this probably the best Halloween I have ever had."

"Really?" Georgia asked. "I thought it only made you grouchy."

Andrew smiled. "Yes, usually it does, but I think God sent me a little angel in black who helped me realize that it was better than I had anticipated."

"I taught you?" She asked and when he smiled and nodded, she continued. "Cool."

She took the costume and the scythe from off the bench and put both things under her arm. Together, they walked back towards the large gymnasium. As they disappeared inside the building a white dove flew through the trees and disappeared over the small town.

The End


End file.
